Lu Heng returned to the private apartment Vought had arranged for him, took a shower, then lay on the couch scrolling through his phone.
He got a little thirsty, so he checked the liquor cabinet. It was packed with all kinds of expensive liquor; even the bottles looked pricey.
Then he thought about his annual salary of twelve million dollars.
Lu Heng shook his head. He felt like he was about to be bought off by capitalism's sugar-coated bullets.
Popularity rose and fell. The spotlight couldn't stay on him forever.
The emotions he collected online would fluctuate, too.
It looked like another variable he'd have to account for. He needed to stay in the public eye.
Current Ability Points: 54,676 / 100,000
Lu Heng was considering which key character to approach next, or where he might go to fight crime, when his phone rang.
The caller ID showed an unfamiliar number.
His phone was fairly private. Not many people had his number.
He figured it was probably Vought International calling.
"Mr. Guardian? This is Ashley Barrett from the Vought PR Department."
The voice on the other end was quick and urgent.
"We need to talk about what happened tonight. As soon as possible. Please come in."
Lu Heng glanced at the time. It was 1:40 a.m.
What the hell was wrong with her?
Who called someone in the middle of the night?
"Tomorrow morning, nine o'clock. Your office."
"But—"
Lu Heng didn't care why Ashley was still working at 1:40 in the morning. He hung up.
He rolled over and fell asleep in two seconds.
A Viltrumite's body didn't need much sleep, but Lu Heng liked sleeping. It was a habit he'd picked up in his previous life.
Besides, there was nothing wrong with letting Ashley stew for a few more hours.
The next morning, at nine sharp.
Lu Heng showed up outside Ashley's office right on time.
He walked in without even knocking.
Ashley sat behind her desk. Three laptops were open in front of her, and seven or eight empty coffee cups were piled beside her.
Her dark circles looked like she'd been punched twice.
She'd obviously stayed up all night.
"Sit, please. Would you like coffee? Water?" Ashley stood and forced a professional smile.
After Lu Heng had left her hanging all night, Ashley hadn't dared breathe a word of complaint. Now that the man himself had finally arrived, she immediately plastered on a flattering smile.
As an insider and a minor executive at Vought, she knew full well that the man in front of her was no less dangerous than Homelander.
"Let's get to the point."
Ashley took a deep breath and turned one of the laptop screens toward him.
It showed security footage from the conference room the previous night.
The angle was clear: the door flying off its hinges, The Deep standing in the middle with his pants half off, Annie bending her knees, and then Lu Heng flying in.
"The entire floor reserved for The Seven is under surveillance," Ashley said rapidly. "So far, only the head of security and I have seen this footage. I've locked down the original file, and security signed a confidentiality agreement, but..."
One hand drifted unconsciously toward her hair and tugged at it.
"I need your cooperation. If this video gets out, The Deep is finished, and The Seven's brand image will take a major hit. Vought's stock price will..."
"Are you telling me what to do?"
Ashley fell silent.
Lu Heng leaned back in his chair, his legs crossed and propped on the corner of her desk. He looked so at ease, you'd think he was in his own home.
No, he wasn't even this brazen at home.
"Ashley, right? I remember you. You're a smart woman, so I'll make this clear."
He raised one finger.
"First, keep the video. Don't destroy it. Keep a backup locked behind the highest level of clearance."
"Second, starting today, The Deep can't take part in any of The Seven's core activities. Come up with an excuse. Send him on a charity tour, or have him cut a ribbon at an aquarium. I don't care. Just keep him out of Starlight's sight."
Ashley opened her mouth to say something, but Lu Heng didn't give her the chance.
"If you think that's too difficult, I can go talk to The Deep myself. But my way of talking might not be appropriate inside Vought Tower. You've probably seen the video of A-Train getting slapped last time."
Ashley's hand trembled. She hurriedly tried to stop him.
"No, no, don't do anything rash. We can talk this out!"
"I...I need to check with Madelyn first—"
"Fine, but I won't budge. The atmosphere inside The Seven is rotten." Lu Heng stood, ready to leave. "Keeping someone like The Deep on the team is bound to blow up sooner or later. Today it's Starlight. Tomorrow it might be one of his fans."
"Superheroes who champion environmentalism are hard enough to find. Do you really have to put a twisted pervert like him in that role?"
"I'm sure Vought has enough money to replace The Deep. Plenty of people would be willing to take his place."
Ashley was already making a call, her hands shaking so badly that she mistyped the number twice.
[Key Character · Ashley Barrett] [Emotional Change: Fear / Helplessness / Forced Compliance] [Ability Points Gained: +743]
Lu Heng left Ashley's office, intending to go downstairs for breakfast.
He'd just reached the elevator when a voice called from behind him.
"Guardian?"
Starlight stood at the far end of the hallway, dressed casually in a white hoodie, jeans, and sneakers.
Her slightly chubby cheeks made her look so innocent—an absolute golden-haired sweetheart.
"Were you waiting for me?" Lu Heng asked.
"Do you have time?"
"I do."
"Could we find somewhere to talk? Not here. There are cameras everywhere."
Lu Heng thought it over.
"How about the rooftop?"
The rooftop of Vought Tower.
The wind was strong, and half of Manhattan was visible from up there.
With one precise flick of his finger, Lu Heng fired a compressed-air projectile and blew out the rooftop camera.
"About last night..." Annie spoke first, looking confused. "How did you know?"
"You're wondering if I was spying on you. I wasn't," Lu Heng said.
"I have super hearing. I can hear most things inside the building."
"So you were listening the whole time?"
"Of course I wasn't doing it on purpose. Super hearing doesn't have an off switch. I can only do my best to filter out useless information."
Annie fell silent for a while.
"Ever since I was little, I wanted to be a superhero. My mom told me when I was very young that I was special, that I could save the world. I always believed her—until last night."
She lowered her gaze to her hands.
"Joining The Seven was my dream. But on my very first night, I almost got..."
Lu Heng didn't respond. He wasn't sure why Annie had come to see him.
To thank him? He'd just happened to be there.
Annie took a deep breath.
"Why did you join Vought?"
"For the money, the fame. Vought can give me what I want."
Annie turned to look at him.
Lu Heng shrugged. "I'm not joking. Before I joined the Vought family, I had only thirty-seven dollars in my bank account."
"And Edgar offered me a deal I couldn't refuse: a twelve-million-dollar salary and a Midtown Apartment. In exchange, I could still fly around fighting crime, but I'd belong to Vought International. Only an idiot would turn down a deal like that."
Annie looked surprised.
She'd thought Guardian had joined Vought International for the sake of fairness and justice.
H-how could his reasons be so...
"You didn't save me for the money or the fame, did you?"
"That was just a side benefit!" Lu Heng spread his hands. "Vought might be a cesspool, but I can still choose what I want to do. I saved you because I couldn't stand watching a pervert get what he wanted."
Lu Heng made up an excuse on the spot.
He'd saved Starlight simply because she could provide Ability Points.
As for women, Starlight really was pretty and cute, but his Viltrumite blood made him prefer women with a tougher look, like Queen Maeve.
"This conversation isn't going the way I imagined."
Starlight pursed her lips. She'd thought it would be a meeting of two idealists, a chance for their souls to connect.
Instead, the guy across from her was a complete blockhead.
"That's the gap between ideals and reality, kid!"
"You're only a year older than me. Why are you acting like some old man?"
Annie instinctively slapped Lu Heng.
The gesture came so naturally that by the time she realized what she'd done, it was too late.
Annie snuck a glance at Lu Heng.
He didn't seem to mind.
[Key Character · Annie January (Starlight)] [Emotional Change: Confusion → Relief → Deepening Trust] [Ability Points Gained: +1,847]
Current Ability Points: 57,266 / 100,000
The two of them stayed on the rooftop for more than twenty minutes, chatting about all sorts of things.
They mostly talked about everyday stuff and shared a little about themselves. By the end, Lu Heng had become Starlight's first friend at Vought.
After she left, Lu Heng stayed on the rooftop for a while longer.
His super hearing picked up a heartbeat moving away.
The rhythm was familiar.
It was Homelander's heartbeat.
How long had he been listening?
Lu Heng had no idea.
But even without knowing, he could guess Homelander had come because of The Deep.
Homelander didn't like losing control of things, especially The Seven, which he considered his own.
And now, someone had tried to interfere with a member's place on the team without even consulting him!
That was unquestionably one of Homelander's taboos.
"Ooh, getting mad?"
Lu Heng grinned.
Vought Tower.
Homelander's private room.
He stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows, arms crossed as he stared at his reflection in the glass.
His face was flawless, his blond hair combed perfectly into place.
But his expression...looked worse than if he'd eaten ten thousand flies.
The Deep was about to be sidelined. Edgar himself had delivered the order to him!
It was not open to debate or question.
The window shattered, and a cold wind swept into the room.
Homelander's expression slowly slipped out of his control.
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